Baldwin's debut ad knocks 'cheating' China

6/21/12 5:52 AM EDT

Democratic Rep. Tammy Baldwin is poised to launch her first television ad of the Wisconsin Senate race, casting herself as a fighter for jobs and whacking China for economic “cheating.”

“In Wisconsin, we lead the entire nation in paper industry jobs. But China? They lead the world in cheating and it’s costing us jobs in Wisconsin,” Baldwin says in the spot, which was shared early with POLITICO. “So I brought Democrats and Republicans together to put sanctions on China now and punish them for making billions breaking trade rules.”

The congresswoman closes out the ad by saying that “when the rules are fair, Wisconsin workers come out ahead.”

Baldwin has a clear shot at the Democratic Senate nomination and it’s unclear which of four Republicans she’ll end up facing in the fall. Regardless of who Baldwin’s opponent is, the GOP has signaled they’ll try to brand her as a conventional liberal Democrat — an attack that could be blunted a bit if Baldwin defines herself early as a fighter for blue-collar economic interests.

A Marquette Law School poll released Wednesday pointed to a competitive general election, depending on who Republicans nominate in their August primary. Baldwin starts out 8 point behind former Gov. Tommy Thompson, tied with former Rep. Mark Neumann, 6 points ahead of state House Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald and 9 points ahead of investor Eric Hovde.